KR101358914B1 - Apparatus for photoresist stripping - Google Patents

Abstract

A photoresist stripping apparatus is disclosed. The photoresist stripping apparatus of the present invention is an apparatus for stripping a photoresist applied to a panel, comprising: an ultrasonic generator provided under the bottom of a tank in which a stripping solution is stored, and bubbles from the stripping solution contained in the tank when the ultrasonic generator is operated. A peeler configured to generate the peeler and having a bubble generator provided in the bottom region of the tank to peel the photoresist applied to the panel;
A filter for filtering the release liquid discharged from the water tank; And
And a circulator configured to circulate the peeling liquid filtered by the filter back into the water tank. According to the present invention, by generating bubbles in the stripping solution and generating ultrasonic waves, the stripping of the photoresist can be efficiently performed from the panel, and the stripped sludge-type photoresist can be discharged without being precipitated, so that the sludge-type photoresist This can prevent the panel from being recontaminated.

Description

Photoresist stripping device {APPARATUS FOR PHOTORESIST STRIPPING}

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a photoresist stripping apparatus, and more particularly, to easily peel photoresist applied to a surface of a flat panel with ultrasonic waves and bubbles for various purposes, such as protecting panels used in various display devices. The present invention relates to a photoresist stripping apparatus which can be reused by filtration after removing the stripping solution efficiently.

In general, a display device such as a liquid crystal display (PDP), a plasma display panel (PDP), a field emission display (FED), and organic light emitting diodes (OLEDs) includes a display panel and a driving circuit for driving the display panel. Include.

Such a display device is used as a display device in various equipments.

By the way, the photoresist is applied to the panel used for such a display apparatus for various purposes.

For example, it is applied for the purpose of forming a semiconductor layer of a desired pattern on a glass substrate or preventing surface damage of a panel.

In the case of forming the semiconductor layer, first, a semiconductor layer (polysilicon or amorphous silicon), an insulating film, a wiring layer, or the like is formed on the surface of the glass substrate, and then a photoresist suitable for the pattern is applied.

The photoresist applied to the panel for these purposes should be removed after the purpose is achieved. As a method of removing the photoresist used as a mask for protecting or patterning the panel, a method using an oxygen gas plasma and various There are known methods using branched oxidants.

First, a method using an oxygen gas plasma is a method of generating an oxygen gas plasma by injecting oxygen gas under vacuum and high voltage, and decomposing and removing the photoresist by reacting the oxygen gas plasma with the photoresist.

However, this method requires a costly generating device for generating an oxygen gas plasma, and damages the wafer itself including the device by the rotating particles present in the oxygen gas plasma.

Next, as a method of using various oxidants for decomposing the photoresist, a method of using hot sulfuric acid or a mixture of hot sulfuric acid and hydrogen peroxide as an oxidant is known.

In addition, the Republic of Korea Patent No. 10-0840678 (Announcement Date: 2008.06.24), after irradiating UV (Ultra Violet) to the remaining photoresist after the pattern or ion implantation is completed by using a basic solution to reduce the cost and An apparatus for removing a photoresist and a method for removing a photoresist using the same are proposed to reduce the cost of wastewater treatment.

However, this prior art breaks the azo bond of DNQ (Diazonaphthoquinone), which acts as a PAC (Photo Activated Compound) present in the photoresist by irradiating UV to the photoresist, thereby disappearing the interaction (restrain) with the resin. Thereafter, it could be removed by the basic solution, but by simply removing the photoresist using a photoresist removal solution and, there was a problem that the removal of the photoresist was not complete, and the removal of the photoresist was not continuously performed. .

In addition, Korean Patent Publication No. 10-2001-0039581 (published date: May 15, 2001) discloses an ultrasonic cleaning device and a resist stripping device.

Such a resist stripping apparatus includes an ultrasonic cleaning unit having a stripping solution supply means for supplying a stripping solution irradiated with ultrasonic waves to the object to be cleaned through the stripping solution supply port, wherein the ultrasonic cleaning section is located upstream of the stripping solution supply port. A vibration element oscillating ultrasonic waves in the flow path of the stripping solution, and a part of the flow path of the stripping solution located on the downstream side of the vibrating element extends upward from the horizontal direction from the upstream side to the downstream side; Having a structure that prevents damage to the resist to be processed, resist

Although the time taken for peeling can be drastically shortened, and the amount of use of the resist stripping liquid can be further reduced, simply supplying the stripping liquid to which the ultrasonic wave is applied to the target object completely and It was difficult to remove efficiently. In addition, there was also a problem that a high cost by using a new stripping solution continuously.

1. Republic of Korea Patent Registration No. 10-0840678 (Notification Date: 2008.06.24) 2. Korean Patent Publication No. 10-2001-0039581 (published date: May 15, 2001)

The technical problem of this invention is providing the means which can remove the photoresist apply | coated to a panel efficiently.

Another technical problem of the present invention is to provide a means for continuously filtration of a peeling liquid containing a photoresist peeled from a panel and then circulating it in a peeling water tank.

It is to be understood that both the foregoing general description and the following detailed description are exemplary and explanatory and are not intended to limit the invention to the particular embodiments that are described. It will be apparent to those skilled in the art, There will be.

The above technical problem is, according to the present invention, an apparatus for peeling a photoresist applied to a panel,

The panel includes an ultrasonic generator provided under the bottom of the tank in which the stripping solution is stored, and a bubble generator configured to generate bubbles in the stripping solution accommodated in the tank when the ultrasonic generator is operated. A peeler for peeling the applied photoresist;

A filter for filtering the release liquid discharged from the water tank; And

It is achieved by a photoresist stripping device comprising a circulator to circulate the stripping solution filtered by the filter back to the water tank.

The tank,

An inner tank including the ultrasonic generator and the bubble generator and accommodating a panel; And

The inner tank is accommodated, and the outer tank is configured to collect the exfoliating liquid overflowed from the inner tank and to discharge it to the filter.

The outer tank,

The upper portion of the inner tank is coupled while wrapping to be located inside.

The inner tank is provided with a drain valve for selectively discharging the peeling liquid to the filter,

The outer tank is provided with an overflow pipe for supplying the separation liquid overflowed from the inner tank to the filter.

On the upper end of the inner tank,

A plurality of overflow grooves are formed to overflow the stripping solution to flow to the external water tank.

The bottom of the inner tank is formed to have a structure in which the bottom is narrow and expands toward the top.

The bubble generator,

A plurality of ejection tubes provided in close contact with the bottom of the inner tank or spaced apart from each other and having nozzles through which air is ejected; And

When the air generated from the air generator is supplied to the blowoff pipe, it comprises a control unit for adjusting the amount of air supplied.

The filter,

A filtration unit for continuously filtering a peeling liquid containing a photoresist and a foreign substance peeled off by receiving a peeling liquid from the water tank by the drain valve or an overflow pipe; And

It consists of a temporary storage tank for temporarily storing the peeling liquid filtered in the filtration unit.

The filtration unit,

A filtered water tank accommodating a peeling liquid discharged by the drain valve or the overflow pipe;

A filter feed roll provided at an upper portion of one side of the filtered water tank and the paper filter wound;

Paper filters wound on the filter feed rolls are installed on both sides of the filtrate tank so as to be accommodated in the collection tank outside the filtrate tank after passing through the inside of the filtrate tank horizontally, and a belt for supporting and moving the paper filter is provided. Feed rollers are installed to remove the paper filter from the filter feed roll to move continuously; And

Including a roller drive for driving the feed roller,

The stripped photoresist is included and the stripping liquid discharged from the water tank is supplied to the upper portion of the paper filter moving through the inside of the filtering water tank so that the photoresist peeled by the paper filter is continuously filtered.

The driving unit includes:

It is further provided with a speed controller for controlling the moving speed of the paper filter.

The circulator includes:

A circulation pipe connecting the temporary storage tank and the water tank; And

It is to include a circulation pump for circulating back to the water tank is supplied to the circulation pipe or the temporary storage tank is filtered filtered.

The circulation tube is provided with a mesh filter for additionally removing the foreign matter or photoresist contained in the circulating release liquid.

According to the present invention, by generating bubbles in the stripping solution and generating ultrasonic waves, the stripping of the photoresist can be efficiently performed from the panel, and the stripped sludge-type photoresist can be discharged without being precipitated, so that This can provide the effect that the phenomenon of re-contamination of the panel can be prevented.

In addition, by filtration of the stripping solution continuously and then circulated back to the water tank, not only the stripping operation of the panel can be continuously performed, but also the effect of reducing costs by using the stripping solution can be provided.

1 is a schematic block diagram showing a photoresist stripping apparatus according to the present invention.
FIG. 2 is a schematic view showing a bubble generator of the photoresist stripping apparatus shown in FIG. 1.
FIG. 3 is a schematic plan view showing a water tank of the photoresist stripping apparatus shown in FIG. 1.
4 is a schematic side cross-sectional view showing the inner tank of the peeler shown in FIG.

Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. In the following description of the present invention, the well-known functions or constructions are not described in order to simplify the gist of the present invention.

As used herein, the singular forms "a," "an," and "the" include singular forms unless the context clearly dictates otherwise.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a schematic block diagram showing a photoresist stripping apparatus according to the present invention. 2 is a schematic view showing a bubble generator of the photoresist stripping apparatus shown in FIG. 1, FIG. 3 is a schematic plan view showing a water tank of the photoresist stripping apparatus illustrated in FIG. 1, and FIG. 4 is shown in FIG. 1. It is a side view which shows the inner tank of the peeler shown.

1 to 4, the photoresist stripping apparatus according to the present invention efficiently peels a photoresist applied to a glass substrate, a panel, a semiconductor wafer, or the like, and is used to peel the photoresist. The liquid is continuously filtered and reused, and the ultrasonic generator 14 provided under the bottom of the tank 12 in which the stripping liquid is stored, and the stripping liquid contained in the tank 12 when the ultrasonic generator 14 is operated are operated. A bubble generator 16 configured to generate bubbles and provided in the bottom region of the water tank 12 to discharge the photoresist applied to the panel by ultrasonic waves is discharged from the water tank 12. It includes a filter 20 for filtering the peeling liquid, and a circulator 30 for circulating the peeling liquid filtered by the filter 20 back into the water tank 12 and supplied.

This will be described in more detail.

1 to 4, the water tank 12 of the peeler 10 includes an ultrasonic generator 14 and a bubble generator 16, an inner water tank 12A in which a panel is accommodated, and an inner water tank. It consists of the external water tank 12B which accommodates 12A and collects the peeling liquid overflowed from the internal water tank 12A, and discharges it to the filter 20. That is, the water tank 12 is made of a double, the photoresist peeling of the panel is made in the inner water tank 12A, the washing water deliberately overflowed in the inner water tank 12A is collected in the outer water tank 12B, and then the filter 20 To be discharged.

At this time, the outer tank 12B may be configured to surround the entire inner tank 12A, but in this case, if the ultrasonic waves may reach the outer tank 12B, and collect only the exfoliating liquid overflowed from the inner tank 12A and discharge it. As it satisfies, it is not necessary to wrap the entire inner tank 12A. Therefore, the outer tank 12B has a structure that is coupled to the upper outer side of the inner tank 12A while wrapping the upper portion of the inner tank 12A to be positioned inward as shown in FIG. 1.

A drain valve 13 for selectively discharging the peeling liquid to the filter 20 is provided on the lower side of the inner tank 12A, and the peeling liquid overflowed from the inner tank 12A is disposed in the outer tank 12B. 20 is provided with an overflow pipe 15 for supplying. Therefore, the peeling liquid accommodated in the inner tank 12A can be selectively discharged, and the peeling liquid collected in the outer tank 12B is immediately discharged | emitted to the filter 20 through the overflow pipe 15. As shown in FIG.

As shown in FIG. 1, a plurality of overflow grooves 17 are formed at the upper end of the inner water tank 12A to overflow the peeling liquid and flow to the outer water tank 12B. The overflow grooves 17 may be formed in various forms.

As shown in Figure 4, the lower region of the inner tank 12A is formed in a structure in which the lower portion is narrow and expands toward the upper portion. That is, the ultrasonic wave generator 14 is provided in the center of the bottom, and the blowoff pipe 16A of the bubble generator 16 is provided in each inclined surface formed in the both sides. As such, since the center of the bottom is formed to be recessed lower than both sides, the photoresist sludge peeled from the panel and deposited on the bottom can be easily and efficiently discharged through the drain valve 13.

In addition, a gas discharge device for discharging gas (smell), water vapor, or the like may be further provided at an upper portion of the inner water tank 12A.

The ultrasonic generator 14 has a function of peeling the photoresist applied to the panel by applying ultrasonic waves to the stripping solution and the panel. That is, the ultrasonic generator 14 has a function of activating the peeling of the photolace and floating the sludge of small size.

The bubble generator 16 is used to generate a large amount of bubbles in the stripping solution. The bubble generator 16 is installed in close contact with the bottom of the inner tank 12A or spaced apart, and has a plurality of jets having nozzles 16B through which air is blown out. 16A of tubes, and the control part 16C for adjusting the quantity of air supplied when the air which generate | occur | produced from the air generator 16D is supplied to each blowing pipe 16A. The adjusting unit 16C further includes an air filter for removing moisture or impurities contained in the air.

Each of the ejection pipes 16A may be provided in a plural number and may be installed to intersect the ultrasonic generator 14 as shown in FIGS. 1 and 4.

The bubble generator 16 is mainly used to float large sludge, and is intended to float relatively large sludge and easily discharge it. Of course, there is also the purpose of allowing the sludge of small size to be suspended.

The filter 20 is for continuously filtering the peeling liquid discharged from the inner water tank 12A or the outer water tank 12B, and is removed from the water tank 10 by the drain valve 13 or the overflow pipe 15. The filter unit 22 for continuously filtering the peeling liquid containing the photoresist and foreign substances peeled off by receiving the supplied, and the temporary storage tank 24 connected to the filtration unit to temporarily store the peeling liquid filtered by the filtration unit 22. It is composed of

Such a filtration part 22 is provided in 22 A of filtration tanks in which the peeling liquid discharged | emitted by the drain valve 13 or the overflow pipe 15 is accommodated, and the upper part of one side of the filtration water tank 22A, and a paper filter ( The filter feed roll 22C wound around 22B and the paper filter 22B wound around the filter feed roll 22C horizontally pass through the inside of the filtering water tank 22A, and then the collection tank 22D outside the filtering water tank 22A. Are respectively installed on both sides of the filtrate tank 22A so as to be accommodated therein, and a belt 22E for supporting and moving the paper filter 22B is installed to release the paper filter 22B from the filter feed roll 22C. Feed rollers 22F for continuous movement. And the roller drive part 22G for driving the feed roller 22F is included.

The filter part 22 includes a peeled photoresist, and the peeling liquid discharged from the water tank 10 is supplied to the upper portion of the paper filter 22B which moves through the inside of the filter water tank 22A, and then the paper filter 22B. The photoresist peeled off by this is to be continuously filtered.

That is, the paper filter 22B continuously moves the filtrate water tank 22A at a constant speed, and the peeling liquid is supplied from the upper portion of the moving paper filter 22B to pass through the paper filter 22B, and the filtration is continuously performed. You lose.

The heater 24A is installed in the temporary storage tank 24. This heater 24A is for holding and maintaining the peeling liquid supplied from 22 A of filtered water tanks at 50-60 degreeC. In this way, the temperature of the stripping solution is maintained at 50 to 60 ° C. so that the sludge is easily broken during ultrasonic vibration. That is, when the temperature of the stripping solution is maintained at 50-60 ℃, the peeled photoresist is broken more finely, when the sludge of such a small size is generated, it is easy to float during the ultrasonic generation and bubble generation, so Due to overflow (overflow) can be easily discharged. In addition, it helps the filtration in the filtration unit 20. At this time, the peeling liquid temperature sensor for controlling the operation of the heater 24A is provided, the configuration for controlling the heater 24A by this sensor is further provided.

The driving unit 22G may further include a speed controller (not shown) for adjusting the moving speed of the paper filter 22B. That is, it is configured to adjust the moving speed of the paper filter 22B moved by the belt 22E by adjusting the rotational speed of the feed roller 22F. This is to prevent the paper filter 22B from moving faster or slower than necessary so as to save consumption of the paper filter 22B while maintaining sufficient filtration performance.

The circulator 30 is for circulating and supplying the filtered stripping liquid stored in the temporary storage tank 24 to the internal water tank 12A. The temporary storage tank 24 and the water tank 10, that is, the internal water tank 12A. Including a circulation pipe 32 for connecting the circulation pipe 32 and the circulating pipe 32 or the temporary storage tank 24 is provided for circulating the filtered release liquid back to the inner water tank (12A), and It is composed. In addition, the circulation pipe 32 further includes a mesh filter 36 for further removing foreign matter or photoresist contained in the circulating peeling liquid. This mesh filter 36 is constituted by about 50 meshes.

Referring to the operation of the photoresist stripper according to the present invention configured as described above are as follows.

1 to 4, the panel is put into the inner tank 12A, and the ultrasonic generator 14 is operated in a state in which a predetermined amount of the stripping liquid is continuously supplied to the lower side of the inner tank 12A. The photoresist applied to the film is peeled off. Subsequently, air generated in the air generator 16D of the bubble generator 16 is ejected through the nozzles 16B of each of the ejection pipes 16A to generate a lot of bubbles in the stripping liquid.

In this way, a large amount of bubbles are generated from the nozzles 16B of the respective ejection pipes 16A provided on the bottom side of the inner tank 12A while the peeling liquid is continuously supplied to the inner tank 12A. Through each overflow groove 17 formed in the upper end of the tank (12A) is overflowed to the outer tank (12B). At this time, the peeling liquid overflowing into the external water tank 12B contains the photoresist sludge peeled from the panel.

In other words, in the state where the photoresist sludge exfoliated from the panel by the ultrasonic waves of the ultrasonic generator 14 does not sink by the bubbles generated by the nozzles 16B, the filtered or fresh exfoliating liquid is circulated. Since it is continuously supplied from 12 to the lower side of the inner water tank 12A, it overflows and discharges to the outer water tank 12B with peeling liquid. That is, when the amount of the peeling liquid replenished from the circulation pipe 32 overflows the outer tank 12B, the sludge floating in the peeling liquid by the bubble is discharged to the outer tank 12B.

This process is continuous.

On the other hand, the peeling liquid overflowed to the external water tank 12B is discharged to the paper filter 22B of the filtration part 22, and passes through the paper filter 22B. In this process, the sludge contained in the stripping liquid is filtered through the paper filter 22B and the stripping liquid is stored in the temporary storage tank 24.

Then, the paper filter 22B collects after passing through the filtered water tank 22A while being unwound by the filter feed roller 22C because the belt 22E driven by the roller drive unit 22G is moved toward the collection tank 22D. Collected into tank 22D.

In this way, since the stripping solution is discharged to the moving paper filter 22B, the filtration process of the stripping solution may be continuously performed. In addition, since the new paper filter 22B is applied continuously, the filtration efficiency of the stripping liquid can be improved.

On the other hand, the filtered release liquid filtered in the filtration unit 22 and stored in the temporary storage tank 24 is again filtered again by the mesh filter 36 by the circulation pump 34 to the lower side of the inner water tank 12A. Supplied.

In addition, when cleaning the inner tank 12A, the drain valve 13 provided on the bottom surface of the inner tank 12A may be opened to discharge all of the sludge deposited as well as the peeling liquid contained in the inner tank 12A.

In this way, the photoresist stripping apparatus has a structure for efficiently discharging the photoresist sludge together with the stripping liquid, and has a stripping liquid circulation structure for filtering the stripping liquid containing the sludge and then supplying it back to the inner water tank 12A. It is possible to reuse the stripping solution to not only reduce the cost of peeling the photoresist but also improve the stripping efficiency of the photoresist.

While the present invention has been particularly shown and described with reference to exemplary embodiments thereof, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited to the disclosed embodiments, but, on the contrary, It is obvious to those who have. Accordingly, it should be understood that such modifications or alterations should not be understood individually from the technical spirit and viewpoint of the present invention, and that modified embodiments fall within the scope of the claims of the present invention.

10: water tank 12A: inner water tank
12B: external water tank 14: ultrasonic generator
13: drain valve 16: bubble generator
15: overflow pipe 16A: jet pipe
16B: Nozzle 16C: Adjuster
16D: air generator 17: overflow groove
20: filter 22: filtration unit
22A: Filtration tank 22B: Paper filter
22C: Filter Feed Roller 22D: Collection Tank
22E: Belt 22F: Feed Roller
22G: Roller Drive 24: Temporary Storage Tank
30: circulator 32: circulator
34: circulation pump 36: mesh filter

Claims (12)

An apparatus for peeling a photoresist applied to a panel,
The panel includes an ultrasonic generator provided under the bottom of the tank in which the stripping solution is stored, and a bubble generator configured to generate bubbles in the stripping solution accommodated in the tank when the ultrasonic generator is operated. A peeler for peeling the applied photoresist;
A filter for filtering the release liquid discharged from the water tank; And
And a circulator configured to circulate and supply the peeling liquid filtered by the filter back to the water tank,
The water tank may include: an inner water tank including the ultrasonic generator and the bubble generator, the panel accommodating; And an outer tank configured to receive the inner tank and collect the exfoliating liquid overflowed from the inner tank and discharge it to the filter.
The inner tank is provided with a drain valve for selectively discharging the peeling liquid to the filter, the outer tank is provided with an overflow pipe for supplying the peeling liquid overflowed from the inner tank to the filter,
The filter,
A filtration unit for continuously filtering a peeling liquid containing a photoresist and a foreign substance peeled off by receiving a peeling liquid from the water tank by the drain valve or an overflow pipe; And a temporary storage tank for temporarily storing the peeling liquid filtered by the filtration unit.
Photoresist stripping apparatus. delete The method of claim 1,
The outer tank,
The upper portion of the inner tank is wrapped on the inner side while being coupled to the upper outer portion of the inner tank,
Photoresist stripping apparatus. delete The method of claim 1,
On the upper end of the inner tank,
Characterized in that a plurality of overflow grooves are formed to overflow the peeling liquid to flow to the outer tank,
Photoresist stripping apparatus. The method of claim 1,
The bottom of the inner tank,
The lower portion is characterized in that it is formed in a structure that expands toward the upper,
Photoresist stripping apparatus. The method of claim 1,
The bubble generator,
A plurality of ejection tubes provided in close contact with the bottom of the inner tank or spaced apart from each other and having nozzles through which air is ejected; And
When the air generated from the air generator is supplied to the blowoff pipe, characterized in that it comprises a control unit for adjusting the amount of air supplied,
Photoresist stripping apparatus. delete The method of claim 1,
The filtration unit,
A filtered water tank accommodating a peeling liquid discharged by the drain valve or the overflow pipe;
A filter feed roll provided at an upper portion of one side of the filtered water tank and the paper filter wound;
Paper filters wound on the filter feed rolls are installed on both sides of the filtrate tank so as to be accommodated in the collection tank outside the filtrate tank after passing through the inside of the filtrate tank horizontally, and a belt for supporting and moving the paper filter is provided. Feed rollers are installed to remove the paper filter from the filter feed roll to move continuously; And
Including a roller drive for driving the feed roller,
It is characterized in that the peeled photoresist is included is discharged from the water tank is supplied to the upper portion of the paper filter moving through the inside of the filter water tank so that the photoresist peeled by the paper filter is continuously filtered. doing,
Photoresist stripping apparatus. 10. The method of claim 9,
The driving unit includes:
Further comprising a speed controller for adjusting the moving speed of the paper filter,
Photoresist stripping apparatus. The method of claim 1,
The circulator is
A circulation pipe connecting the temporary storage tank and the water tank; And
And a circulation pump installed in the circulation pipe or the temporary storage tank to circulate and supply the filtered release liquid to the water tank again.
Photoresist stripping apparatus. 12. The method of claim 11,
The circulation tube is characterized in that the mesh filter for further removing the foreign matter or photoresist contained in the circulating release liquid,
Photoresist stripping apparatus.

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